Why do some choose not to wear a helmet on jumps??

[Calvin19 0]

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Even a relatively minor bump to the head can change who you are...forever.

Hmmm.... 9.5 months ago i hit my head so hard, that ANY harder, i would be dead or vegi, and i dont feel ANY different right now than i did last year. Freinds and Family agree that i have not changed at all. I was wearing a helmet as well. a really nice helmet
________________________________________________

Do you think your freinds and familly would tell you if they thought you had changed into a bit of a prat.

nooo....

-SPACE-

[skreamer 1]

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But wearing a helmet does raise some suspicion on those less than legal jumps. Kind of like "excuse me sir, why are you wearing a helmet in my hotel staircase and what's in that funny looking backpack of yours?".

Why don't you keep the helmet inside the stash bag until you are ready to gear up?

[CanuckInUSA 0]

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But wearing a helmet does raise some suspicion on those less than legal jumps. Kind of like "excuse me sir, why are you wearing a helmet in my hotel staircase and what's in that funny looking backpack of yours?".

Why don't you keep the helmet inside the stash bag until you are ready to gear up?

There's a certain less-than-legal span that I've not so recently jumped where myself and the other people who I jumped it with all agreed that while we were doing our best to be good stealthy BASE jumpers at this site, there is a time when you are exposed to car traffic just as we're about to jump and we thought wearing helmets would raise suspicion that we were BASE jumpers using this span. But you can make the argument that we do look like potential suicidal people when we're on the other side of the rail prior to jumping without helmets. With helmets we look like BASE jumpers, without out them we are suicidal. What can I say you can't win either way. But we tried to use this site responsibly and to my knowledge it's not a hot site. While I know he will deny it, for arguments sake it's pretty much Jaap's site so he can tell you more about it if he wishes. It's a fun jump.

Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

[HydroGuy 0]

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But wearing a helmet does raise some suspicion on those less than legal jumps. Kind of like "excuse me sir, why are you wearing a helmet in my hotel staircase and what's in that funny looking backpack of yours?".

Why don't you keep the helmet inside the stash bag until you are ready to gear up?

There's a certain less-than-legal span that I've not so recently jumped where myself and the other people who I jumped it with all agreed that while we were doing our best to be good stealthy BASE jumpers at this site, there is a time when you are exposed to car traffic just as we're about to jump and we thought wearing helmets would raise suspicion that we were BASE jumpers using this span. But you can make the argument that we do look like potential suicidal people when we're on the other side of the rail prior to jumping without helmets. With helmets we look like BASE jumpers, without out them we are suicidal. What can I say you can't win either way. But we tried to use this site responsibly and to my knowledge it's not a hot site. While I know he will deny it, for arguments sake it's pretty much Jaap's site so he can tell you more about it if he wishes. It's a fun jump.

Lots of people - maybe even the majority - won't narc you out for BASE jumping.

Pretty much everyone with a cell phone is going to call the authorities if they believe they just witnessed a suicide.

Get in - Get off - Get away....repeat as neccessary

[MyTwoCents 0]

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While I know he will deny it, for arguments sake it's pretty much Jaap's site so he can tell you more about it if he wishes.

It's not his site. There are many other locals using it, you just never jumped with them.

Jaap did change his mind on the helmet thing and has used one there again. The main reason for not using a helmet there at one point was not for the climb-over-the-railing (you're pretty much fucked and seen by that point anyway), but for the approach. This particular object has an approach with high visibility. A full-face helmet adds a lot of bulk to a stashbag, whereas just a rig looked essentially like a small backpack.

But I digress. It's not Jaap's site (he doesn't jump it anymore), nor is it mine. I believe it's mainly used by the other locals these days.

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Lots of people - maybe even the majority - won't narc you out for BASE jumping.

I've seen cops appear on the bridge twice, despite wearing helmets (and fiddling with a static-line long enough to make it blatantly obvious we were not suicide jumpers). Some people just love being NARCs.

[CanuckInUSA 0]

Of course I am joking when I say that it is Jaap's site. I only do this to bring him out of the wood work. And as I said, damned if you do and damned if you don't wear a helmet at that site. It is a fun jump.

Try not to worry about the things you have no control over

[mickknutson 0]

I remember in Norway, a jumper was jumping without a helmet. Had an off heading, and a very slight contact with the cliff itself. I am certain a bar fight would be a harder hit than what this was....

However, it provved just enough force to crack the globe of his eye, and well.......So much for using that eye EVER again!

Funny thing is, he owned a hard helmet, but would only wear it skydiving.

Mick Knutson
* BLiNC Magazine "Everything you ever wanted to know about Parachuting, but didn't know whom to ask."

[katzurki 0]

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[reply
Long live helmets and hanwags...

I was wearing HanWags. one month old ones. and i will limp for the rest of my life. I had such an injury that had i NOT been wearing hanwags, i would have had a much less life-altering leg injury. The boots kept the bones inside my skin. thats it.

[Faber 0]

did you ever skydive whithout a helmet,shoes etc etc?
you feel more free on the jump itself.

I do use helmet on 99% of my jumps aslong whith my kneepads..

but i do understand why people want to experience the no helmet jump.

Its about calculating the risk,is it worth it? then do it,if not wear a helmet..

Stay safe
Stefan Faber

[stitch 0]

Yeah, factory divers are great. Just take out the crappy shield and you're good.

"No cookies for you"- GFD
"I don't think I like the sound of that" ~ MB65
Don't be a "Racer Hater"

[Calvin19 0]

also, on a high speed water impact, a helmet increases the projected impact area of a head. therefor, making it decelerate faster than if it had no helmet on. but that might be the only safety argument against a helmet. other than weight and whiplash on a deep slideroff opening.

-SPACE-

[crwper 7]

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also, on a high speed water impact, a helmet increases the projected impact area of a head. therefor, making it decelerate faster than if it had no helmet on. but that might be the only safety argument against a helmet.

Following my brother's accident at the bridge earlier this year, in which he landed on his back in the water, one of the things that surprised us was that there was absolutely no damage to his helmet. I'm not sure if we would have recognized the symptoms of whiplash, but there was no damage whatsoever to his head and neck, either.

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other than weight and whiplash on a deep slideroff opening.

Several years ago, 587 and I were jumping a low span. In the search for better head protection, he tried a motorcycle helmet. On that object we were hitting the ground pretty hard, and on impact his head kept moving because of the momentum of the helmet. His neck was quite sore for a few days.

Still, I think that's a good reason to jump fairly lightweight helmets, rather than jump without.

Michael

[Calvin19 0]

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one of the things that surprised us was that there was absolutely no damage to his helmet.

well, yeah. i mean, how damaged would a helmet be from a terminal or faster water impact? the helmet is damaged by a single point impact where the helmet slows the head down quickly and spreads the force on head throughout the helmet. on a water impact, the helmet hits the water and has almost equal force over the projected area of the helmet, making it almost useless for a water impact.

[base_rigger 0]

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I was wearing HanWags. one month old ones. and i will limp for the rest of my life. I had such an injury that had i NOT been wearing hanwags, i would have had a much less life-altering leg injury. The boots kept the bones inside my skin. thats it.

That I have a hard time to believe.

Care to give us more details?

You know you have a problem when maggot is the voice of reason at the exit points

[base_rigger 0]

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making it almost useless for a water impact.

I guess Jason's back protector was useless too having seen he impacted water.

You know you have a problem when maggot is the voice of reason at the exit points

[Calvin19 0]

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making it almost useless for a water impact.

I guess Jason's back protector was useless too having seen he impacted water.

thats incorrect.
the POINT of a back protector is to lessen the cahance of a back breaking lengthwise, and a small bit of puncture type protection.
The ONLY job a helmet does is lessen the deceleration of the head. not keep it in its correct place.

think about shit before you post it.

-SPACE-

[Calvin19 0]

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I was wearing HanWags. one month old ones. and i will limp for the rest of my life. I had such an injury that had i NOT been wearing hanwags, i would have had a much less life-altering leg injury. The boots kept the bones inside my skin. thats it.

That I have a hard time to believe.

Care to give us more details?

i have explained my doctors and my thoughts on this a lot on dorkzone, the reason it is again under conversation in this thread amazes me.

-SPACE-

[base_rigger 0]

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think about shit before you post it.

likewise.

You know you have a problem when maggot is the voice of reason at the exit points

[abby 0]

keep your panties on girls, helmet or not is your choice, yes a helmet will help if you got a off heading and hit, but if you know how to fly the damn thing you might be ok, so note to self... don't hit the wall...now shut up and jump...

[crwper 7]

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well, yeah. i mean, how damaged would a helmet be from a terminal or faster water impact?

I don't actually know enough about the dynamics of water impacts to say. I've heard a lot of people say that hitting water at that speed is like hitting concrete, but I have a feeling those people are exaggerating the point somewhat. You may well be right.

One other thing that comes to mind regarding helmets is unusual, but perhaps worth metioning. When I got to Jason about 15 seconds after he had hit, he was lying face-up in about a foot of water. He had never lost consciousness, but was in very rough shape. His head was being kept afloat by the foam in his helmet. Had this not been the case, I really don't think he would have been able to keep his own head above water. It's not the sort of thing you plan for, but I would say it's at least as important as the increase in projected area. Although there are a lot better reasons to get a helmet with proper crush material (as opposed to a shell with a thin padded lining), I've added this one to my own mental list.

Michael

[460 0]

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I was recommended “Factory Diver”. What are yalls opinion on this? Shall I just say fuckit and build my own line of helmets?
Let me know because I feel like crap for not wearing a helmet on any jumps.
Thanks in advance,
space

I find these helmets to be ideal for tracking...

Chris

Looks like a death sandwich without the bread - Steve Deadman Morrell, BASE 174

[SabreDave 0]

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To me (of course my opinion), it seems FUCKING STUPID!!!!

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Newsflash,.. ..... BASE jumping in general is stupid! So who gives a fuck if people jump without!??! I jump with on every jump, I also wear a decent layer of armour because that's what "I" choose to do.

It has been said plenty ............. personal choice, nothing more. Now go be stupid!

SabreDave

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[hookitt 1]

There seems to be plenty of good reasons to wear a helmet. Besides personal choice, has anyone come up with a good reason not to wear a helmet?

My grammar sometimes resembles that of magnetic refrigerator poetry... Ghetto

[SabreDave 0]

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There seems to be plenty of good reasons to wear a helmet. Besides personal choice, has anyone come up with a good reason not to wear a helmet?

There seems to be plenty of good reasons to not BASE with or without a helmet.
Aside from persoanl choice has anyone come up with a good reason to jump off shit??

SabreDave

[bmsbase 0]

one less thing to remember to bring to the jump.
one less thing to lose.
one less thing to put in the wrong place.
one less thing to put on at the exit.
one less thing to put in the stash bag after.

thats five less thoughts ...

blaine